Alison de Vere (16 September 1927 – 2 January 2001), while married also known as Alison Weschke, was a British

animator An animator is an artist who creates multiple images, known as frames, which give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, and video gam ...

, known for her animated short films ''The Black Dog'' and ''Psyche and Eros''.

Career

Born in Peshawar into a British military family, de Vere studied art in

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

and at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

. She worked as a background designer at Halas and Batchelor studio beginning in 1951, at a time when women were unheard of in creative leadership roles in British animation. Nonetheless, she took the leadership of the animation unit of Guild Television Services in 1957. During the 1960s, she worked as a freelancer, but joined TVC in 1967 to work as design director on the

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

film '' Yellow Submarine'', in which she had a cameo. The 1970s, when de Vere was an associate of the Wyatt Cattaneo commercials studio, were the beginning of her most productive period; the short films she made then "began her career of collecting prizes at every international festival at which her work was seen". In the 1980s and 90s, assisted by her son Ben, she created works for Channel 4, including her best-regarded works ''The Black Dog'' (1987, 19 min.) and ''Psyche and Eros'' (1994, 26 min.). She continued working on children's television series until the end of her life. Other animated works include ''Cafe Bar'' and ''Mr. Pascal''.

Acclaim

''The Guardian'' characterized de Vere as "not only the first woman auteur cartoon film-maker in Britain but also the best", thanks to her proficiency in animation technique and her design sense; and her film ''The Black Dog'' as representing "the same sort of advance in animation that ''

The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...

'' was in opera". De Vere's awards include the Grand Prix at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival (1979 for ''Mr. Pascal'', ex æquo), and the first prize at the Odense International Film Festival (1989, for ''The Black Dog''). In 2015, de Vere was among leading women animators honored by a short film opening the Annecy festival.

Works

In addition to her previously mentioned works, de Vere worked as an animator for the TV series '' The Animals of Farthing Wood'', ''East of the Moon'' and '' The Beatles'', among others.

Personal life

In 1948 de Vere married the painter Karl Weschke (1925–2005), whom she later divorced. The couple had a son, Ben de Vere Weschke.

References

Bibliography

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:De Vere, Alison British animators British women animators British film directors British animated film directors Women animated film directors British women film directors 1927 births 2001 deaths